On display since December 16, 2020
With his provocative statement of film as a subversive art, Amos Vogel violently challenged the common understanding of film,
championing a cinematic cosmos rich with disapproved, forgotten, defiant and censored works. In 2021, this figurehead of curatorial
rebelliousness would have celebrated his centenary.
Amos Vogel
(1921–2012)
Amos Vogel was born on April 18, 1921 in Vienna as Amos Vogelbaum. He had to flee from Austria in 1938 and reached New York
via Havana. He lived in New York City until his death on April 24, 2012. Vogel was the founder and curator of Cinema 16 (1947–1963), one of the most significant film societies in the USA focusing on independent cinema. Together with Richard
Roud, he founded and programmed the New York Film Festival (1963–1968) emphasizing contemporary avant-garde cinema. Vogel is the author of the provocative book Film as a Subversive Art (1974) and was professor of Film Studies at the Annenberg School for Communication at the University of Pennsylvania for more than two decades. Until his old age he remained active as a lecturer, critic and
consultant for numerous international film festivals.
„This film is a historical event; praised
by intellectuals and artists, condemned by a large part of the press, confiscated by customs, banned by censorship, it may
not even be shown in its original version in its country of origin.“
